Woodside Grange Care Home

On this page

• Overview
• Assessing needs
• Delivering evidence-based care and treatment
• How staff, teams and services work together
• Supporting people to live healthier lives
• Monitoring and improving outcomes
• Consent to care and treatment

The service was effective and has been rated good. The provider had effective systems and processes in place to recognise people's changing health and care needs and act on these in a timely manner to keep people safe. Other healthcare professionals were consulted when needed about people’s care. Staff told us how important it was to them to support people to live their lives as independently as possible. Staff told us they took time and spoke to people.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People’s support needs were assessed, and they received care in line with these. People and their relatives were involved in all stages of care planning, this ensured people’s opinions and desires were being met wherever possible.

There were effective systems in place to assess and monitor people’s needs. The registered manger told us there were regular handover meetings between staff, so everyone had a clear understanding of the support people needed.

Care plans were detailed and robust, they included specialist advice and guidance on how best to support people and these were reviewed on a regular basis. Staff also used a range of tools to ensure peoples medical and nutritional needs were met.

People received care and support in line with good practice. There were some good interactions between staff and people. People’s nutrition and hydration needs were met. The chefs were aware of people’s preferences and staff asked people for their menu choices every day.

The management team told us they were transitioning to digital care records which made monitoring peoples needs easier and this helped to make care more person-centred. Staff and management were aware of people’s preferences and things that were important to them.

Care plans contained positive behaviour support information; this included identifying triggers which impacted on people’s well-being and behaviours, as well as techniques for staff to use to reduce any behaviours which may challenge. Staff completed a comprehensive assessment of each person’s physical and mental health needs prior to delivering care. The assessments included information about communication, allergies, medical background, weight, dietary needs, mobility, memory and cognition.

People told us staff were responsive to their needs, one person said, "There was an issue with [person’s] bed, the manager sorted it straight away, nothing was a problem. I can’t fault them."

Staff worked in partnership with health care professionals to provide the most effective care. There was regular contact with people’s GPs and mental health teams where necessary. Staff told us communication was effective and that they followed advice from healthcare professionals and felt comfortable seeking guidance whenever necessary.

People were supported to access other healthcare professionals and services; care workers accompanied people or arranged visits to hospitals and appointments with GPs. One health care professional told us, “We’ve built up a good relationship with Woodside Grange and there is good communication between us.”

Care records included details about people's medical history and ongoing health needs. A record of appointments was kept and there was evidence of collaborative working with healthcare services.

People were supported to maintain a balanced diet. Staff monitored people’s food and fluid intake and if there were any concerns, specialist advice was sought from the person’s GP or from the speech and language therapists (SALT). One person said, "I like the food a lot, staff are always on hand to help me, I get a choice, and I get help eating if I struggle which can be often." People wanted to see more activities take place in the home, one relative said, "There isn’t many activities in the home, it would be great if [person] was out in the garden more, it's a lovely environment."

Staff were aware of people that were nutritionally at risk and took steps to address this. For example, some people had their food and fluid monitored and others were provided with high calorie snacks. We saw during lunchtime that people were offered a visual choice of meals, and some people were supported to eat their meals by staff.

Audits of people’s health using weights, fluid and nutrition charts and mobility helped staff to ensure people were able to live healthy lives as independently as possible.

Engagement within the service was positive, people felt safe and listened to. People completed well-being surveys, and they confirmed staff provided person-centred care which often meant giving emotional support to people. One person said, "The staff are very considerate, they know when [person] might feel down and will help lift their mood."

Management told us people’s outcomes were monitored through the day via daily records and observations. Regular audits were completed to ensure any improvements could be put in place and staff discussed people’s outcomes during daily handover meetings.

Processes were in place for care plan reviews. There were policies to ensure people were encouraged to live independent lives where possible. Audits were in place to look at accidents or incidents and to monitor falls and use data to minimise the risk of repeated falls. The registered manager carried out monthly checks of people’s care records.

People were supported to have maximum control over their lives and staff supported them in the least-restrictive way possible. People told us they were given choices about their care and treatment and staff respected their decisions.

Staff were working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act and knew how to support people and their decisions. The registered manager told us the majority of people living at the home were subject to Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), staff and the management team fully understood people’s capacity and the need to obtain consent wherever possible.

DoLS were recorded and managed via a spreadsheet, this included reference to when a DoLS expired and needed to be renewed. There was a consent form for people to complete as part of their admission to the service which covered who could access a person’s care plan and how photographs could be used.